


Not Quite Good Enough to Be Going On With

by white_serpent



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2001-04-16
Updated: 2001-04-16
Packaged: 2018-07-24 19:55:20
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,769
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7521025
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/white_serpent/pseuds/white_serpent
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Two men, a truth potion, and a locked room. Chaos ensued.  (This is a very old PWP.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	Not Quite Good Enough to Be Going On With

**Author's Note:**

> I had decided not to post this here. Unfortunately, Ink-Stained Fingers is importing their entire old archive, and my choice appears to be "let them import whatever version they have with whatever crazy formatting it happens to have" or "put it up myself." I'd rather not have to get control of it and clean it up after the fact. So. This was originally posted in 2001 (canon followed only to Goblet of Fire), and changes from its original posting are minimal.

"I said before that it was good enough to be going on with. It isn't anymore. You two couldn't get along before. Try again."

***

That pronouncement by Dumbledore had led to Severus being trapped in a locked room with Sirius Black. Most of the furniture had been removed-- presumably to discourage using it as a weapon. A bottle of Severus' truth potion sat on the single remaining table in the middle of the room-- it wasn't Veritaserum, but it was strong enough to ensure that anyone who spoke wouldn't be lying. Snape wasn't particularly happy with the development, and could guess that Black wasn't either.

They stood in opposite corners, Black glaring and Snape feeling his lips pull up into his usual sneer. Unfortunately, given Snape's knowledge of how Dumbledore worked, it was all too clear that they wouldn't be getting out of the room anytime soon, and, when they did, that the bottle of truth potion had best be empty.

With that knowledge in mind, and an all-too-clear recollection of what Sirius Black was like when angry, Severus walked to the middle of the room and swigged off half of the bottle of truth potion. He put the bottle down with a thump, then dropped his wand on the table for good measure. In response to Black's wide-eyed stare, Severus shrugged and snapped, "Have a ball, Black. I'm sure you have only a few thousand questions you want answered. Better hurry up before it wears off."

He stalked back into his corner. Most of the time, Snape didn't think that Dumbledore was stupid or foolish. Albus Dumbledore just tended to be overly optimistic.

With another glare, Sirius Black stalked to the center of the room and finished off the bottle of truth potion. "Let's get this over with," he snarled. "I have far more important things to do."

From Snape's point of view, the best to be expected from this entire experience was that it would be over when the effects of the truth potion wore off. Black was so certain he had more important things to do? "Didn't you always," Snape fired back. "Sirius Black-- busy featuring in the lustful dreams of most of the female population of Hogwarts, and half of the male population. And how the mighty have fallen, haven't they?"

Sirius just shrugged. "You don't have much time either, Snape. I'm sure you have questions of your own. We'll alternate. And I'll even be generous-- you can go first."

"Fine." Time _was_ limited. Best to get the questions he most wanted answered out of the way first. Which should he get out of the way first? He thought back over the past few years. _No point wasting a question on that... Ah, yes._ Of all the questions to spring to mind, there was one question he wanted answered most. Besides, asking it would be guaranteed to inflict the maximum amount of pain on Sirius Black. After all that Severus had put up with over the years from Sirius, he felt he deserved to get a bit of his own back. "With the information I got you, you should have been able to rescue that miserable friend of yours. Instead, you screwed it up, and left me stuck trying to protect that obnoxious son of his. Sirius goddamn Black. How the hell did you manage to screw it up?"

" _You_ got the information?"

Snape inclined his head. _Yes, I'm sure that comes as a shock, doesn't it?_ "Spy, remember? Truth potion. Now answer the question."

Sirius looked down, seemingly engrossed in his clenched hands. The silence between them drew out. Was Sirius backing out already? No-- Sirius spoke in halting tones, almost seeming to force his tongue and lips to move. "I-- I was too close to them. I didn't trust myself. Peter, though, who would suspect that James would trust him with a secret? He was so weak and forgettable." Severus almost felt guilty at provoking the pain in Sirius' voice-- almost. "But Peter was working for Voldemort and now they're dead. Don't you think I know it's my fault? If only Peter had been dead, I could have been content to pay the price of suffering in Azkaban for it."

 _Sirius Black-- esteemed martyr to the cause._ Severus let his usual sarcasm color his tone. "Oh, I'm sure."

Sirius' head snapped up, eyes locking on Severus'. From the fury and pain in them, Severus knew Sirius would try to wound as deeply as he'd just been wounded. Severus fought down an ironic smile. Sirius probably wouldn't be successful-- _he doesn't know where to hit._ "Whereas you, Severus Snape, managed to pull yourself out at the last minute and escape Azkaban entirely. And now Dumbledore seems to trust you with his life-- with Harry's life-- with all of our lives. Just how did you manage that, Death Eater?"

 _Or maybe he does know where to hit._ Severus slammed a fist against the stone wall, and was surprised to see Sirius jump. He laughed sharply; what else _should_ he have expected from the perfect Sirius Black? Always so forthright, and so very blind. "Yes, at the last minute. I've always known what you and your stupid friends thought of me, _Sirius._ 'Severus Snape, obsessed with evil potions and Dark Arts. Most likely servant of Voldemort in the history of the world. Evil slimy bastard all around.'" He lifted his lip in another sneer. "Got it in one, didn't I?" He didn't wait for Sirius' agreement. "You're just so sure I 'got out at the last minute.' Wouldn't you be fascinated to know that immediately after my painful initiation ceremony, I went straight to Dumbledore? Of course, when you're recruited, you either join or die, so I managed to tamp down my disgust for the whole lot of them long enough to get the damned Dark Mark burned into my arm and was saddled for the rest of my life with the nasty reputation of a Death Eater."

Sirius was silent a few moments. His voice was low and even when it came. "I'm sorry, Severus. I didn't know."

"No. I'm sure you never cared to."

"You're right. Your turn to ask."

The last pair of questions had bitten a little too deeply. His next question wouldn't be kind, but it wouldn't invite quite as much retaliation. "Why did you try to kill me?"

"What?"

This was the question he'd wanted answered since the night it had happened. "Easy enough question, Black. You knowingly sent me in after your werewolf friend, fully aware that he could kill me. Why?"

"I was a kid, Severus. I didn't think about it. You were always watching us, always nosing into our activities. I didn't want to kill you-- I wanted to scare you. And I wanted you to-- stay away. When I told James what I'd done, he was horrified and went after you. I was stupid. I'm sorry."

Severus snorted in disgust. "Amazing how many allowances are made for you 'good guys,' isn't it? You decide I'm irritating and put me in a position where I could get killed. Potter sneaks down through those secret passageways to places where he isn't safe, and plays pranks and breaks laws under the cover of that invisibility cloak. And everyone thinks I'm a servant of the Dark Lord because I have a sharp tongue and an ominous name."

"I said I was sorry, Severus."

 _Yes, and the problem with you, Remus Lupin, and James Potter was that all three of you always thought that "I'm sorry" would fix everything. You still do._ "So you did. And your question?"

"Since you brought up our time at school, Severus-- why did you always follow us around?"

Proof again that Sirius Black was willfully blind. He should have known the answer to that question already. Severus spat out a response. "Did it ever occur to you I might have wanted to be part of your little group?"

"No. You were in Slytherin. It was-- we didn't make friends outside our houses, and certainly not in that one. You had Crabbe, and Goyle, and Lucius Malfoy. Of course we never thought--"

Snape felt his sneer re-emerging. He echoed Sirius in a mocking tone. "'Crabbe, and Goyle, and Lucius Malfoy'-- yes. What an excellent bunch of friends. Let's not forget Karkaroff or Avery, either. Yes. Slytherin-- the house of future Death Eaters."

"You could have told us."

 _Ah, yes. The classic Gryffindor mentality: overly impressed with his own sense of justice. Time to inject a little reality._ "And you would have _listened?_ Look. I'm sorry I was ambitious, Black. I'm sorry I was good at the Dark Arts. But there it was, wasn't it? It put me in Slytherin, and I've spent the rest of my life making up for it."

"You were very convincing." It was delivered with the forthrightness that Severus remembered from their time at school together. How quickly Sirius had dismissed any hint of his own culpability.

"Isn't that nice to know. I must have been, mustn't I, or I would have been dead in my first few days of spying. Now, my question, I think." Snape curved his lips up into an approximation of a smile. This question, he had no right at all to ask, and didn't expect Black to answer, but as the other man had said, Severus had always been nosy. And when else would he ever have Black under the influence of truth potion? Besides, as closely as Black had guarded the secret, if he _did_ answer, it might actually be entertaining. "It was one of the major topics of interest at school, Black. As I said, you were the object of a great many lustful dreams. Who was the object of yours?"

Sirius Black turned away, facing into his corner. "I can't imagine that you need to know the answer to that question."

"I _don't_ need to know, but I would like to." Black's silence seemed to require more persuasion. Black hadn't refused to answer outright. "Oh, come on, Black. You went through women like they were nothing. You never kept a girlfriend for more than three weeks. Everyone once thought you didn't know who you were looking for. After awhile, we figured you knew exactly who you were looking for... and she was already taken. Was it Lily? Arabella? _Narcissa?_ "

"Narcissa? _God, no._ "

With that much of the admission made, Severus knew that Black was going to answer the question eventually. "Who was it then?"

Sirius' voice was muffled, facing into the corner. "I will answer you, if swear on whatever you hold sacred to fully and completely answer the next question I ask, no matter what it is. Are you willing to pay that price, Severus?"

Severus closed his eyes, leaning back against the wall, glad that Black couldn't see his face. It was a hefty price to pay for his curiosity. But who could Sirius have wanted that he thought the secret was worth that kind of price, even now? Severus was hooked. Now he had to know the answer. "Yes, I will answer your question, whatever it is. My word on it."

"Sit down." How bad could this be? Had Sirius had lustful dreams about McGonagall? Severus sank down against the wall at the thought. Sirius voice sounded almost wild. "It humiliated me at the time, you know. It took years before I could bring myself to tell James. Even then, I felt terrible. I--"

"You're stalling," Severus offered. _It must have been McGonagall._

"I know. You would think the years in Azkaban would have beaten all of this out of me, wouldn't you?" Severus held his tongue this time. "I suppose I can't keep beating around the bush." There was a hollow thump, and Severus interpreted it as Sirius Black hitting his head against the wall. "You were the focus of them all, from the age of thirteen on."

 _Oh, God._ Had Severus heard correctly? "You're lying."

"Am I? I would think you'd have more faith in your truth potion than that."

"You expect me to believe that the perfect Sirius Black dreamed about me? Do you think I'm stupid?"

"If I thought you were stupid, I would hardly have spent five years having erotic dreams about you, would I?"

"How should I know what fascinates you?" Severus said through numb lips.

"Seeing as you were the one who did... I would think that you might have some idea."

"Why?"

Sirius let out a bitter laugh. "If I had known why, I wouldn't have been as embarrassed. I never had dreams about James, or Remus, or-- God forbid-- Peter. Or the girls that threw themselves at me. When I fell asleep, I was focused on you. It was a large part of why I wanted you to go away-- stop watching and leave us alone. I was so embarrassed-- and so afraid that you'd find out why. And it is why James was so horrified when he heard what I had done-- telling you how to get past the Whomping Willow, sending you after Remus. James knew immediately why I had done it. After he got you out, he gave me a tongue-lashing I'll never forget. He was right. It wasn't your fault I was having dreams about you that I didn't know how to deal with."

His explanation was both unbelievable and very plausible. "You dreamed about me-- for years. Do you still?"

There was a very long silence this time, time enough for Severus' heart to stop beating and start again. "Yes. Just think of the potential you have for blackmail."

"But you've always hated me."

"What does that have to do with anything?"

Severus shook his head, keeping his eyes closed. "Apparently nothing." Sirius Black had spent years having lustful dreams about him-- Severus Snape. He kept repeating that thought in his mind; perhaps he'd eventually accept it.

"Remember, Severus. You promised to fully and completely answer my next question, no matter what it was."

Yes, he had promised. He'd given his _word_. But that was _before_... when he had thought the worst thing Sirius could ask him was about the details of his association with Voldemort, Death Eater initiation rites, or something of that stamp. Now, he had the sinking sensation that he knew the question Sirius was going to ask. "Ask the question," he snapped.

"Who was the subject of your dreams and late night fantasies, Severus? Truthfully."

"I should never have agreed to this."

"You did. So, answer."

It wasn't as if Black would trumpet the information about when he knew... so be it. "I told you before, whether you understood or not. Most of the women and half of the men had erotic dreams about you. I was one of them. _Perfect_ Sirius Black-- a bit too fond of Muggle clothing-- but looking good enough in it that it didn't matter. Oh, yes. You'd be amazed how prominently you featured in my dreams. As often as I imagined peeling those leather trousers off of you, I could have removed them in the dark with my teeth if given the opportunity. Not to say that there weren't others in my dreams-- perhaps I was a little less focused than you-- but you were the most frequent subject."

A very long silence this time, and Severus couldn't help but wonder: _had_ Sirius contrived some way to avoid the truth potion? If he had, there was no way that Severus could live this admission down. "Did you really? I never suspected."

"Of course. Even after..."

"After I tried to kill you?"

"Yes. After that." Severus felt his mouth twist unpleasantly. "They did take a different tone, after."

Severus heard a rustle and saw Sirius shaking his head out of the corner of his eye. "I'm not going to ask the other question. I'm nothing like I was."

 _Other question? Ah, yes: 'do you still?'_ "No, you're not. Good. I don't fancy being fed to a werewolf."

Sirius laughed humorlessly. After a pause, he asked, "If I had told you at the time, would you have believed me?"

"Of course not. I would have been sure you were trying to make a fool of me."

Sirius' voice was very quiet now. "Would you have told..."

Severus scowled. "Told? Told whom? If you hadn't noticed, Black, I'm not exactly a fount of information. I've hardly made a point of telling anyone things they didn't need to know."

"You told all of Slytherin about Remus."

Severus shrugged. Black had a point there. Severus still felt slightly guilty about that. "Had Albus bothered to tell me you were innocent, I probably wouldn't have." He shrugged. "Or perhaps I would have. The pair of you _did_ cost me the Order of Merlin."

"Oh."

"I suppose it's my turn to ask a question, if you care. Would you have wanted those fantasies fulfilled?"

"I've answered your other questions. I really don't want to answer--"

That sort of evasion was a very clear sign. Snape was amazed; eyes widening and jaw dropping. "Is that a yes?"

"I-- yes."

Snape shook his head slowly. There was an obvious follow-up question, but it was one he wasn't going to ask. Before he made a move to speak again, he had to decide what he wanted to do about it. After all of these years and all of the changes, was Severus willing? Interested? The unreality of the situation kept hitting him. God, he'd had _Sirius Black_ , the _Gryffindor God_ , tell him that he, _Severus Snape_ , was his dream lover and had always been. How could Severus _not_ be interested?

"Come over here, Sirius, and tell me about those dreams of yours."

"Severus, I'd rather--"

"We have hours left before they come to let us out. Of course, we can open the door ourselves, but we'll probably end up regretting it if we do. I don't have any more questions about your history during the war, and I doubt you have any more about mine. So come over here, sit down, and tell me just what it is you wanted from me all those years ago." Severus really didn't think Sirius would do it. No matter how much Sirius had wanted at the time-- and Severus found it difficult to imagine that Sirius was really telling the truth-- it was something he was clearly embarrassed to admit to. So, Severus was amazed when Sirius, cursing under his breath, rose slowly to his feet and walked across the room, sitting down about a foot away from Severus. 

Sirius wrapped his arms tightly around his knees. "Fine, then. I'll tell you whatever you want."

"I'd hardly be asking you about it if the idea repulsed me." 

Sirius drew in a deep breath and let it out. He didn't seem any happier, or any more comfortable.

"How could you possibly hope to do things you can't bear to talk about?" Severus watched as Sirius drew in a shaky breath, and couldn't help exulting in the power he possessed. Sexual power was something he'd never even hoped to possess over Sirius Black, even in his wildest fantasies. Things like this just didn't happen to Severus Snape. _Sirius goddamn Black._

"Look, Snape, it's not as if I've ever done this before!" Sirius snapped.

"Never with another man, you mean?"

"Never with another man! Women were always--"

Severus shook his head. "Yes. I had some interesting chats with your former girlfriends after you dumped them. They were eager to whisper in a sympathetic ear. I heard quite a lot about you and your women." Severus sighed. "It doesn't matter. Just-- close your eyes. Let loose your deathgrip on your legs, and relax."

If anything, Sirius' grip tightened and his eyes opened wider. "What are you going to--?"

"Stop acting like I'm going to murder you!" Severus let out a muffled curse, and, in frustration, took a step that he otherwise would not have taken quite yet. Before Black could huddle in on himself further, Severus laced bony white fingers in the other man's hair, holding Black's head in place while he brought his lips to meet Black's.

Black's lips were still parted in shock, and Severus used the opportunity to slip his tongue inside Sirius' mouth. Beyond an initial jerk backward, Sirius didn't fight, seeming frozen in place. As Severus continued to taste and probe, he was finally rewarded with Sirius' tongue hesitantly moving against his. At that concession, Severus deepened the kiss, pressing his body more tightly against the other man's, sliding them both down to the floor. Sirius' thighs reluctantly parted, and Severus slid his leg between them, feeling the growing hardness against his thigh, and knowing by Sirius' sudden gasp that he could feel the same.

If anything, it only seemed to make Sirius wilder. His tongue was now eagerly probing Severus' mouth, hands sliding down Severus' spine, grasping tightly, desperately. Severus slid his hands between them, loosening the fastenings of Sirius' robe, parting the fabric, and reaching inside after skin.

At the first touch of Severus' hands, Sirius broke off the kiss, gasping. "Severus, what are you doing?"

Snape lifted one brow sharply. "Was this one of your fantasies, Sirius? Since you're uncomfortable telling me, why don't we see just how many of them I can guess?"

Sirius cried out hoarsely as Severus laved one nipple, working all the while with his hands to finish freeing Sirius from his clothing. Hampering fabric out of the way at last, he encircled the jutting erection with long white fingers. At that simple touch, Sirius' back arched, jerking him off of the floor. 

Severus lifted away from Sirius' nipple, ignoring Sirius' soft whimper. "I'm almost positive you dreamed of this. Let's see if reality can live up to your expectations."

With one quick movement, Severus slid down against Sirius' body, tracing his tongue down the length of Sirius' chest, past the waist, and down to the thick curled hair surrounding the erect and dripping cock. Sirius shuddered convulsively and Severus smiled, knowing, even if Sirius didn't, that whatever power Severus had held before, it was about to be increased a hundredfold. Slowly, leisurely, he traced his tongue around the base of Sirius' erection, moving slowly up in a spiral, finally circling repeatedly under the crown. Sirius hands were twitching by his sides, closing into fists, then releasing.

Severus paused briefly and spoke, making sure the whispered bursts of hot air hit the sensitive tip. "Was this what you wanted? You've never said, Sirius."

"Yes, Severus, please... don't stop," Sirius said through loud pants, eyes opening to meet Severus' eyes. Sirius' eyes no longer looked dead, but they did look desperate.

Holding Sirius' eyes, Severus slowly pulled the tip into his mouth, drawing it progressively further, twitching his tongue as it slid in. 

Sirius screamed out loud, hoarse and long. His hands moved up, lacing themselves through Snape's hair, and pulling, hard. This was not going to take long at all, Snape thought, sliding his mouth, flicking his tongue.

And he was right. A few minutes later, Sirius screamed again, his cock pulsing, spraying into Severus' mouth. Severus slid his mouth up gently, trying to catch everything, swallowed, and tongued the last drops from the tip. Sirius shuddered and shook, the faint sparkle of tears at the corners of his eyes. Severus felt almost guilty. Sirius had wanted this, but perhaps...

He moved up, stretching out by Sirius' side and taking the other man in his arms. Sirius clutched him tightly, pressing his mouth blindly against Severus'. Severus returned the kiss.

As Sirius' breathing returned to normal, Severus finally spoke. "Will you talk to me now?"

"I didn't know it would be like that."

Severus pressed his lips together. "Has no one ever done that for you before?" he asked flatly. 

Sirius' cheeks reddened. "Look, Severus. I'm not completely inexperienced. I've had women. Yes. Some of them have done that for me. This felt different."

"Different how?"

Sirius looked away. "More intense," he said. He was silent a bit longer. "Maybe you've had more practice... Maybe because of the truth potion... Maybe just because it's you."

"What else did you dream about, Sirius? I doubt you'll say anything that shocks me."

The red color spread throughout Sirius' face. "You're joking."

Snape shook his head. "I never said I'd _done_ everything you could imagine, nor that I was willing to. I don't wear black fishnet stockings or carry a whip for anyone. So what do you want? Do you want me to fuck you; do you want to fuck me? Come on, Sirius."

Sirius closed his eyes and clenched his jaw. "Any of it. All of it."

There was no way Sirius could possibly understand the depth of power he'd just handed to Severus, and, for once, Severus felt something approaching protectiveness-- a strong desire not to abuse that power. "I would break you open and fuck you blue if I thought you knew what you were asking for."

"All _right_ , so I'm not as experienced as you are, Severus-- which is galling, come to think of it. I still have a damned good idea just what I want."

"Show me, then."

With a desperate gasp, Sirius was on him, and Severus wondered if he had been wise to push for this.

If Sirius had been nervous before, he seemed to have let loose all of his inhibitions now. His tongue was deep in Severus' mouth, tasting and probing, his hands seeming to be everywhere at once. This was passion verging on desperation. It was almost as if Sirius was his werewolf friend in transformed state, clawing to free Severus from his robes. And then it was heated skin against skin, at last, and, embarrassed to even consider it, he found his own hands just as eager to probe the intricacies of Sirius' body. 

His fingers laced through the tangled mass of Sirius' hair -- _I need to do something about that,_ he thought incongruously -- lips once again tracing a line down the center of Sirius' chest. His ribs were all-too-apparent-- _He needs to eat better, too._

At the touch of his tongue, Sirius cried out again hoarsely, rolling them over once more. The rough woolen robe served as meager insulation between Severus' back and the floor. He didn't care.

This time, it was Sirius' hands laced through his hair, Sirius' lips and tongue tracing a path down his chest, Sirius' mouth closing around his-- he screamed.

An unknown amount of time later, Sirius paused; it was enough to allow Severus' brain to operate again. _He's right. This is-- different._ He forced his clenched fingers to loosen, to clutch at Sirius' shoulder. 

"Do you want me, Severus?" Black's voice was a low whisper.

He was surprised to realize his body was shaking, quivering helplessly as Sirius' had earlier. Uncontrollably, his hips thrust up against the other man, trying to reclaim that lost sensation. 

"Do you?"

Sirius dragged his nail lightly down Severus' side; Severus felt his body clench. Through gritted teeth, "Yes."

The light was dim, but he could easily see the smile on Sirius' face. That look, full of mischief-- yes, very like the Sirius he remembered from school. "When?"

Severus grabbed Sirius shoulders with bruising force. "Don't tease," he hissed.

Sirius was wincing at the grip on his shoulders, but the mischief remained in his eyes. "You said you would break me open and fuck me blue if you were sure it was what I wanted."

"Is it?" His grip loosened slightly, no longer quite bone-crushing.

"Yes."

Severus flipped the other man beneath him, pushing Sirius' thighs apart and kneeling between them. "Just _don't_ change your mind." He was nearly too wild to be careful, to go slowly. But not quite. He had to hold on to his control. There was too much danger that Sirius would suddenly refuse to let this continue. He licked his own fingers slowly, making sure that Sirius saw him do it, then sucked on them-- watching the vein in Sirius' neck jump at the sight, feeling the matching pulse in Sirius' erection pressed against his thigh. He slid one finger inside the other man, pausing momentarily as Sirius stiffened with shock, then probed, widening. As Sirius' panting grew louder, he slid in another finger, then another, probing, moistening, widening until he was certain the other man would accept him, _was_ ready to accept him.

And Sirius looked ready, his face flushed, eyes wide, gasping, shaking.

Severus wrapped the fingers of his other hand around his own erection and positioned himself.

Slowly, he slid into the moistened opening, half-expecting Sirius to refuse now that they'd come to the point. He locked his gaze on Sirius' black eyes, even blacker now with dilated pupils. Sirius was gasping and shaking, but was making no move to protest or fight him.

So. He allowed himself to feel again. So warm, so tight, so much pressure. This, too, was somehow more intense. He tried an experimental thrust, then a few more when Sirius didn't protest.

Freed from the fear that Sirius would refuse, Severus lifted the other man's legs over his shoulders and leaned down, claiming Sirius' mouth and timing the thrusting of his tongue with the thrusting of his hips.

There was nothing beyond the pressure, the friction, the feel of Sirius' body against his, the sound of the other man's gasps, the heat of his mouth. Yes, he wanted Sirius Black-- he needed Sirius Black-- but it wasn't just because he was the Gryffindor God. He had wanted this since his third year at Hogwarts, when he'd started to realize...

They were both grunting and panting now, bodies slick with sweat. 

Severus could feel himself approaching the pinnacle when Sirius' body clenched around him, spraying against his stomach. The tight clench set him off in turn, arching his back as he ejaculated deep inside the other man. Coming down from that high, he wearily eased Sirius' legs off of his shoulders and collapsed on top of him, too tired to speak or think.

Sirius seemed to be in a similar state, arms loosely holding Severus against him. 

It had never been like this before. Severus lay with Sirius, their bodies tangled together by bonds that were neither love nor hate, but somehow a little of both.

***

"Did people know... when you were at school?"

It was an odd question to hear, held tightly in Sirius Black's arms, wrapped in both of their robes. "Some people obviously did."

"God, this is embarrassing. Did you... with Lucius?"

"Don't you know it's bad form to ask about old lovers?" Severus shook his head. "In answer to your question, I never told Lucius, and he doesn't swing that way."

"He was your best friend."

"Aren't _you_ jumping to conclusions. The werewolf is your friend, and you didn't tell him, did you? Lucius and I _understand_ each other relatively well, but we aren't exactly friends. There's a difference. And, as with all good relationships between Death Eaters, I trusted him somewhat less far than I could throw him. That's not exactly a positive feature in lovers. And before you bother to object that you don't trust me, you _do_ , you trust me to a certain extent in certain areas. If you didn't trust me to keep my mouth shut about this, you would never have told me a damn thing... much less... this."

Sirius was silent for a very long time. His arms tightened around Severus when he finally spoke. "I'm not used to that."

"Get used to it. We're not friends, Sirius Black, and I doubt that we ever will be. There are other things we can be, and we aren't exactly enemies... but we aren't friends." It was as clear a warning as he could make it.

"No, we're not."

He couldn't read the tone in Sirius' voice, and damned but he would like to. Perhaps it was that desire that made him continue so quickly. "But if you want to see me... I'll be here."

"You always are."

"Yes." And damning himself for a fool, he said, "Come by. I'm sure you could use a rat-free meal. And a haircut."

"You're not the world's greatest authority on hair, Severus." The well-remembered mischief was there again in Sirius' tone. After the dead look in Sirius' eyes all of the other times Severus had seen him recently, Severus was glad to see that mischief again. Still, Sirius couldn't be allowed to get away with comments like that. A well-placed caress wrung a shiver out of Sirius, and told Severus he had won the point.

"Even dogs need a good brushing once in awhile, Sirius. If you come by, I'll see you get one." He slid his hand lower, forcing a gasp from his lover. "And if you don't like my hair, you'll have to wash it yourself."

***

When the door opened on schedule, Dumbledore found them standing in opposite corners, arms crossed over their chests. He sighed. He walked to the table in the center of the room and lifted the bottle of truth potion, clearly registering that it was empty.

"Any progress?"

Snape looked at Dumbledore with narrowed eyes. "We have reached an accommodation, yes."

"Sirius?"

Black snorted. "I can work with him if I have to."

"That's something, I suppose."

Sirius shrugged, and headed for the door. "Later," he tossed carelessly over his shoulder before resuming his dog shape and sauntering out.

Severus stayed in his corner, leaning up against the wall, hoping Dumbledore hadn't noticed his crumpled robes, the fading smell of sex, the slight hesitancy in Sirius' step.

"Severus, I had hoped for better from you two."

He felt his lip curl into his usual sneer. "We couldn't manage to be friends at school, Albus. We probably never will be. But we can work together well enough. As you said, that will do to be going along with. We won't try to kill each other anymore."

With that comment, Snape walked toward the door, very conscious of Dumbledore's eyes on his back. If the headmaster suspected anything, he didn't say a word as Snape made his way out of the room and into the hallway. Once free, Snape drew in a deep breath and let it out, then headed for the kitchens. 

He had a very large meal to order. And while he was at it, he had best bespeak a private bath and a very _sharp_ pair of scissors.


End file.
